Halloween Homeade Peanut Butter Cups with Soeur Holmgren
Ah! Can I just say how much I love fall/ Halloween? I love this season because I have so many sweet memories from this time of year. A warm home, homemade soup, ginger snaps, football season and sweatshirts. Mom and Dad dressing up in weird costumes, the leaves changing colors on Shadow Wood Circle, carving pumpkins, scary movies, and "This is the Place Haunted House" with my friends in Junior High. I love this time of year. And although the French people might not be as stoked about Halloween as I am, it's still a magical day! My companion and I are currently making home made peanut butter cups... and later today we are going bowling with the elders and a member in our ward. TONIGHT we are eating at a members for FHE with them. So pas mal if
you ask me!
Blues Conference This Week
This week we traveled to Lyon for Blue's Conference. (Blue's are the new bees in the mission). They haven't had blues conference in over a year so we were really lucky to get it. It was suchhhhhh a HAPPY day to see Soeur Goold again. As well as all my old MTC district pals. Soeur Holmgren and I stayed at Soeur Goold's apartment. We got McDonals Mcflurries and Soeur Goold made us coconut chicken curry. She is an UNREAL cook. I'm praying that I'll be companions with her again just so she can cook for me... hehe.
Soeur Goold and Sour Jones Reunited
I loved what President Brown said at Blue's Conference. But more importantly, I loved what I felt and the PERSONAL revelation I received. What I got out of this conference is that it is okay to struggle and feel like this is hard. Because where there is discomfort, there is growth. And although I may feel weak, like I cannot do it... Heavenly Father is standing back, patiently waiting, not stepping in RIGHT away, because he knows I can do it. That is something I need to learn. And the only way to learn is by doing it by myself. He cannot do this mission for me. Sometimes we have to do what we don't want to do in order to become what we want to become.
Heavenly Father knows me. He knows what I need and what my weaknesses are. He knows how to make those MY weaknesses strong but it's going to take some struggling and effort to do so.
MTC District reunited
Another incredible personal revelation I received is that I have help on this mission. He talked about how Jesus Christ asked his father to take away the pain in the garden of gethsemane. How it was too much for him to bear, and if it be his father's will- remove this cup from me. Although his father didn't take away the pain, he sent an angle-Michael- to comfort and strengthen Jesus.
The scripture came into my mind- I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up. And I thought of my uncle Brandon. How he is one of those angels with my on my mission. Standing by my side and helping me have the strength to do this. Maybe Brandon needed to leave this earth when he did, so that he could be here as an angle for me on my mission. I love my uncle Brandon so much. And I talk about him a lot as a missionary. Because I know... I absolutely KNOW that I will see him again one day. Perfect and complete. I am so grateful for everything he taught me because he has made SUCH an impact on my life and on my mission.
Memories of Brandon
Train Ride from Lyon
Last week I wrote in my journal, "Something really amazing must be just around the corner. Because this week was another hard one." And sure enough, something really amazing was around the corner. We were sitting at our table weekly planning on Saturday, when our ami "Q"
called us. He told us he is still in Orleans visiting his brother, but that he will be back today. We asked him if he had prayed and he said, yes. We asked him how he felt when he prayed and he said... I felt a good feeling. I felt an emotion inside of me. He said how his life has been really difficult lately. How ever since he stopped basketball its been really hard and he doesn't know his place in life. But that ever
since he met me on the train, he has felt different. And how he knows something needs to change in his life. He said, I think you have what I need to help me. It was incredible to hear him open up to us. Everything that he said to us just blew me away. It was miracle after miracle after miracle. My companion and I were just looking at each other while he talked to us on speaker phone, with our jaws open and
gripping each others hands just silently squealing with joy.
We are going to meet with "Q" this week. I really have a lot of faith and hope in him. He didn't even believe in God when we first met him, and now just bit by bit his faith is growing. Pray that he will have a desire to continue to develop this faith. That his heart will soften and change.
"M" is are other rockin ami. She is SO RAD. When we met with her this week, we asked her where she was in the Book of Mormon. She pulled out her Book, and she was to page 150!!! And there were all these verses she had marked. It was such a proud "parent" moment. She hasn't gotten an answer to know if the book is true or not yet. But we
are patient with God's timing. She is determined to finish until the very end. Pray that she will give it a try to come to church. She hasn't come to any meetings yet. But we have faith in her!
A Family we visited in the mountains
Funnies: We were walking home from Kevin's apartment (dinner) last night, talking with the Elders. We were talking about halloween and what we were going to dress up as. Elder Zhu gave the suggestion that we dress up as TJ's (Jehovah's witnesses) and walk around with a stand. Um no. Okay and then Elder Zhu said, "I know, I can be rice!"
AHAHAHHAAHHA. I don't even know why but I literally lost it.
I loveeeeee the ward in Nice with all my heart. The members are incredible here. We met with Soeur Shimales this week, a recent convert from Ethiopia preparing to go to the temple. Every time we read a scripture, or she realizing something good, she makes a giant gasping noise like "wow! That is the best thing I have ever heard" noise. It is so cute. She was so excited as we showed her the things she needed to do in order to go to the temple. She smiled so big and nodded her head as we went through the list and she was able to check
off all the things she has ALREADY done.
As a missionary, I've realized how lucky we are to have the temple. People here prepare and prepare to go and are just so determined to make it to the temple. They are preparing for Paris by finding names for the ancestors. The temple is such a special gift. The spirit in the temple feels like Heaven on earth. I love the temple and cannot wait to go back when I'm done with my mission.
The Halloween package I received from my Dad!
Happpyyyyyy Halloweeeeennnnnn!!! Don't be out too late... cause last year there was a spooky man in a mask wandering around late at night.
Have so much fun and eat as much candy as you can!
Love Soeur Jones
We went bowling on Halloween (our Pday) with our new costumes sent from my Dad
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